


eurydice

by displayheartcode



Category: The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: Established Relationship, M/M, Pre-Canon, Tumblr Prompt, World War II
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-27
Updated: 2020-08-27
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:13:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 422
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26144665
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/displayheartcode/pseuds/displayheartcode
Summary: It is 1943 and Nicholas is waiting in a corridor lined with bones.
Relationships: Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolò di Genova
Comments: 6
Kudos: 160





	eurydice

Nicholas looks up from fixing his torch. He leans to his side, a hand ready on the knife he has sheathed in his belt. His body remembers the drop the Nazis tried on him back in the alleyway several hours ago. He turns his torch. A weak beam of light splits through the narrow corridor, briefly illuminating leering skulls and a dirt-packed floor. Relief strikes him like a bullet in the heart - something he knows all to well. He drops the torch. "Yusuf!" 

"Awful place for a date, I tell you." Joeseph's face radiates with happiness underneath the dirt and blood that covers his face. 

Their hands find each other in the darkness. Even in the Parisian catacombs with the dead watching and the war going on above, Nicholas allows himself to feel the joy of his husband's embrace. He breathes in the familiar scent of charcoal and ink, the rough texture of Joseph's curls crusted with blood. They sway on the spot, nearly tripping on the dying torch that causes shadows to flicker on the walls.

Joseph kisses the backs of Nicholas' fingers. "The safe house was compromised and Andy had to throw me out a window. I didn't mean to leave you here for so long, alone with the dead." He lets out a sigh, growing more poetic as he does whenever he worries Nicholas. "You are not meant to be the Eurydice to my Orpheus."

Nicholas frees his hands and runs them through Joseph's hair, instinctively searching for any injuries. The skin is tender where the blood is tangled the most. Even in the dark, he knows Joseph's body by touch alone. The topography of his body is holy to Nicholas, the firm lines of his arms, his steady strength. A landmark to call home. 

"I also lost the knife you gave me," admits Joseph. "But don't worry, it was put to good use."

 _"Yusuf,"_ Nicholas repeats, this time softer. 

"Rohi," Joseph says, matching his tone. "Come, let us go back to the surface with the others. We are not meant to be underground for so long."

Reaching Andy and Booker is not going to be an easy task. Without needing to communicate, Nicholas presses the sheathed knife into Joseph's hands. Reassured by the weight of a second knife in his boot and the gun hidden in his coat pocket, he feels more prepared to join the fight again with Joseph by his side.

They walk carefully together, Nicholas leading as Joseph refuses to let go of his hand. 


End file.
